Kevin’s Lucha Underground Review 9.14.16

Tonight’s show starts with highlights of Dario getting out of jail, the Famous B/Mascarita Sagrada angle and the Weapons of Mass Destruction match announcement.

We see footage that happened during Ultima Lucha Dos when Detective Ryan and Reyes are with their boss, listening to Dario murder Mr. Cisco. Reyes wants to bring in Dario but the boss has none of it (she was told not to pursue Dario last season). Ryan laughs and they get into a little choreographed fight scene but it doesn’t get out of hand. She says this is more than just avenging Cisco. Reyes responds “that’s Mr. Cisco.”

Dr. Wagner Jr. w/ Famous B and Brenda def. Mascarita Sagrada in 0:54
Brenda is dressed like a nurse. Famous B stops Melissa Santos from announcing Wagner because she isn’t famous enough. This stems from Famous B turning on his former client, Sagrada, and attacking him. They actually start with a normal match and Sagrada takes Wagner over. Wagner quickly recovers and wins with a Dr. Driver. Famous B uses a stethoscope to check on Sagrada because “he’s dead”.

Time for a video of the ancient Aztecs. At least, I think it is. A sick, seemingly dying man tells his daughter that a war must be fought. He gives her an amulet that only works on females and tells her that when she becomes a woman, it’ll make her immortal and she won’t age. Even if the war takes a thousand years, they must win the war. Her father then dies. The camera pans to the police captain, Vazquez, and she seems to have half of that amulet. Reyes arrives and she suspends him because he wants to just get Dario, while she wants to use him to get to someone even bigger.

Mil Muertes w/ Catrina def. Argenis in 1:33
This is funny since Argenis was one of the Disciples of Death. Argenis tries but Mil is in a foul mood. He launches him on a powerbomb, but Argenis comes back with a kick and moonsault. Mil kicks out at one and ends him with a spear and Flatliner.

After Catrina administers the lick of death, Prince Puma shows up. He attacks Mil Muertes and nails a missil dropkick that sends him outside. Puma hits a baseball slide and Catrina gets in between them, taking Mil to the back.

We see a clip of Dario Cueto arriving back at his office last week. Joey Ryan comes up to him and says that he knows Dario killed Cisco. He even admits that he’s a cop, but wants to be on the right side of this war, so he offers himself up as a double agent. Joey says he did everything to keep Dario out of jail, unlike his idiot partner. He reveals that Cortez Castro is a cop too. Joey wants a deal because he has child support to pay, so Dario give him some cash.

Back to Captain Vasquez in present day. Reyes shows up and wants to be on her side of the war. She sends him back to the Temple and looks at her half of the amulet after he leaves.

Weapons of Mass Destruction Match: Killshot def. Marty “The Moth” Martinez in 22:21
No rules in this one and the ring is surrounded by military themed weapons. It looks like a giant boot camp set up. Marty comes out in complete military gear including camo face paint, a gun and Killshot’s dog tags. Killshot attacks from behind during Marty’s entrance and ends up busting Marty open in the first minute with a gun. Killshot kicks his head through a wall, but Marty just laughs. Marty takes Melissa Santos hostage and throws her into Killshot. He catches her and lets her go safely before chasing down Marty. Marty goes to the testicular claw, getting a “freaky bastard” chant. The big spots are here as Killshot delivers a 450 splash off the stands onto a standing Moth but was then German suplexed onto the apron a few minutes later. They move into beating the shit out of each other with ladders and chairs. Marty just nails every expression and totally gets his character. He hits a superplex onto some crates before taking a DVD onto a ladder. Marty returns with a powerbomb from inside to the outside through two tables. Note that there is a decent amount of recover time between these spots. Killshot brings out the biggest ladder of the match. It gets set up in the middle of the ring and a table is opened on either side. They fight up top and Mariposa comes out to stop Killshot. He kicks her down and she falls through a table. He grabs Marty’s junk before laying in some brutal shots that send him down a few rungs. Killshot snatches his dog tags back and double stomps Marty off the ladder and through a table to win. Insane finish to an insane match. It was just big spots and brutality for the sake of it either. There were great storytelling bits like Mariposa coming into play and the poignant moment of Killshot getting his dog tags back. We got our first great match of the season. ****1/4

In the back,  an angry Mil Muertes is beating up lockers. Catrina appears and tells him that he will soon get his hands on Prince Puma, he just has to be patient. She says that she has waited hundreds of years to get what she wants and we see that she has the other half of the amulet. Oh shit!

If you do want to check out Lucha Underground, which you absolutely should, and don’t get El Rey Network (like me), you can sign up for the streaming service Fubo.TV. It’s a great way to support the company and channel while streaming the show online. You can sign up and get Lucha Underground right here with Fubo.tv!

8.0

The final score: review Very Good

The 411

Yes, the first two matches are barely even matches. I get that. But the one match we do get is a tremendous war that gave shine to two of the most underrated and overlooked members of the roster. The rest of the show did a great job in furthering angles and setting up the season with Puma/Muertes, the Famous B stuff, the war between Dario and Vazquez and introduced the amulet story.